Probe into benefits of velvet

The deer industry is trying to prove scientifically that antler velvet - new-growth antlers before they have hardened - is "health-enhancing".

The industry also aims to overcome a belief in the lucrative Asian market that New Zealand velvet is inferior.

The benefits of velvet have been evaluated in an external review commissioned by the Velvet Antler Research Group, a joint agency representing the Game Industry Board and AgResearch.

Velvet is prized for the perceived medicinal effect of improving strength and stamina, notably in terms of sexual function.

In his review, Waikato University bio-chemistry Associate Professor Peter Molan challenges industry researchers to prove the authenticity of the health-enhancing effects ascribed in traditional Chinese medicine.

Molan is well-known for his pioneering work on anti-microbial compounds in some forms of manuka honey, which has created new industries on both sides of the Tasman.

Existing research on antler velvet had suggested that antioxidant activity could be responsible for observations that it is an anti-inflammatory, stimulates the immune system and works against degenerative conditions.

There had also been indications that velvet could be used to treat cancer drug side-effects, stress, osteoporosis and liver toxicity.

An accompanying research review by the antler research group says that the biggest competition for deer velvet is the increasingly available and cheaper botanical alternatives.

It notes that velvet has male connotations - "strength and power of stag" - and that males comprise most of the market.

"Any brand awareness is likely to relate to sexual function and it's a relatively short step from vitality to virility," it says.

Molan's recommendations include searching for "incontrovertible evidence" of velvet's benefits, particularly the nature of the antioxidants it contains.

- NZPA